Humanity has transitioned through monumental disruptions in the past. Institutions in all sectors were put to the test: some failed, some adapted, and some innovated themselves into new existence.

The disruptions of our era are monumental as well. And events have shown that 21st-century problems cannot be addressed by 20th-century institutions. We are more interconnected than ever, yet our institutions seem incapable of bridging the solitudes, silos, and stovepipes that impede progress on issues like climate change, health system reform, and the future of the labour market in the face of information technology. The biggest challenges we face require a long-term perspective, but governments are more and more preoccupied with reacting to the 24-hour news cycle.

This year’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Conference is about the future: the future of new governance arrangements, of new civil society initiatives, of innovative technologies, of leadership. It is about institutions’ capacity to overcome their innate resistance to change in order to adapt in the face of disruption.

Register now and join the conversation from 12 to 14 November 2015 in Ottawa, Ontario.